of the statesmen and patriots who bore a conspicuous part in those thrilling scenes. All who are linked by lineage or ties of consanguinity to the heroes of the revolution, preserve sacredly every reminder and relic of their progenitors. Amid such surroundings, my desire for information was stimulated, and the impressions then received remain among the choicest treasures of memory garnered during my sojourn in old Mexico.
Vicente Guerrero was one of the leading spirits of the revolutionary period, and is revered in the history of his country as a man of unyielding patriotism, strict integrity, and stanch loyalty to its cause. After the death of Morelos, the germs of independence were kept alive and nurtured by Guerrero, who operated in the southwest, and was the most conspicuous figure among the insurgents when joined by Iturbide.
In the conflicts which have been waged on Mexican soil, guerrilla warfare has always borne a leading part, the inaccessible mountain fastnesses yielding immunity from danger of pursuit. This was the method pursued by the leaders after the fall of Hidalgo, Morelos, and Matamoras. When at last independence was achieved, Guerrero took an active part in every important movement until his death
He was the third president of the republic, and had served only a short time when he was deposed by Bustamente, then vice-president. He retired to his country estate, Tierre Colorado, in the vicinity of Tixtla; but being informed of a plot against his life, he left there and joined Alvarez, then in revolt against the government which had succeeded that of Guerrero. Fearing his influence, his death was determined on, and when, despite the warnings of Alvarez, he went to
